Telescopic conveyors are commonly used to transport loose bulk materials such as aggregate from one location to another using a conveyor belt arrangement mounted on a frame structure. Some telescopic conveyors operate in such a way that they may be lowered and raised as well as being capable of forward, reverse and radial movement. This capability provides that the conveyor is able to stock piles of aggregate material uniformly upon the ground within a given area. Such conveyors are typically used in mining areas for loading mined materials into bulk carriers. Telescopic conveyors are relatively large structures, which are transported in a number of sections which are then assembled together on site. The fastening arrangement between the various sections typically comprises bolts, however using these to fasten the plurality of sections making up the base frame and/or extendable frame can be cumbersome and time consuming.
A typical telescopic conveyor comprises two or more conveyor sections, which are configured to extend and retract with respect to one another in telescopic fashion. For example, a telescopic conveyor typically comprises an outer base frame from within which a second, extendable frame is configured to extend out of and retract into. This movement is typically effected by a drive mechanism such as a winch and wire rope system. However such arrangements can be time consuming to install and offer less than optimum control of the extendable frame when it is extending out of or retracting into the outer base frame. Furthermore it is not unknown for such rope systems to deteriorate after a period of time and to such an extent that the rope breaks or is otherwise damaged beyond usability.
It is therefore a desire of the present invention to provide an improved drive assembly for a telescopic conveyor.